Where the line breaks
by lazetta croft
Summary: A simple mission going wrong...the avengers end up in the hands of Loki.who has a certain grudge with tony stark. Aka where the avengers get to live the captivity Tony had gone through. tony whump , sadfic, rating for torture.
1. caught in between

Tony nearly jumped as Steve thrusted a hand over his shoulder. He was getting a lot jumpy these days. Afraid to see his discolored veins,afraid of telling pepper about the paladium poisoning, afraid for the end of his privacy in the tower, afraid of what the team would think of him when he dies.  
"stark! Stark!"  
God , Steve, leave me in peace!  
Tony turned towards him.  
"yeah, alive n breathing, no need to worry."  
He flinched at the word alive. Not so much, that is.  
"i think you should stop drinking that much." Steve's mood is unpredictable.  
"goodness! We are trapped in a cave , i guess we wont be getting any beer..."  
The cave.  
Yeah, cold blasts of wind even in a cave. Simple mission gone wrong. Thanks to mr. Disappearing target man, the hulk had smashed the dam, resulting in total waterfall. When they came to, all the avengers were tied in a cave.  
Cave!  
God, so triggering.  
Natasha couldn't blame tony for getting panic attacks here. And the problem was tony knew it.  
She was currently trying to bite barton' s bindings .  
Bruce was experiencing a hulk-aftershock, and was asleep.  
Steve was haranguing tony about whatnots. Poor rascal of a captain, that is. Tony struggled to hide the reactor .no one, except Natasha knew about the reactor .it thumped against his chest lightly. Tony shivered, no suit to keep him warm.  
They had cut open the suit.  
No the time the dam broke, it was unfunctionable. Tony was getting out of it.  
And that's why he was the only one not dried off and was shivering.  
"stark! Any plan to get out?" yeah, leave it to Barton to kick a man when he is down.  
"thinking." tony shot back. Like a tied man with a hole in his sternum and shrapnel in chest could construct a suit with no material while tied up.  
Somebody opened the door that tony had missed. Light slipped through.  
"pleased to meet you, avengers.."  
Tony squinted his eyes . What the hell people think that the avengers can be avenger-napped.  
It was...  
A human?  
Tony laughed at the taught, recieving glares. He closed his mouth.  
This person was as tall as a mountain,heavily bearded. His voice had an indian touche. No glasses or anything. This person had an malicious aura.  
"and Mr. Stark..." he hissed at tony's name." you, you are the cheif guest here."  
Tony turns to his team who gives back the same confused look that tony gives them.  
'this is trouble.'

tony began struggling against his binds.

and then the man dissapeared in a wist of green smoke.

and then he came back.

everyone could regognize him now.

it was loki.


	2. revealing things

Tony squinted his mouth went dry at the sight of loki.

'At least let a man live his last moments happily...'

Clint began wriggling instantly when Loki transformed.

"Natasha, " venom poured out of his voice," allow me to use abusive language.

Natasha smirked before nodding. Tony smiled a fake smile.

"okay then, Loki you-" before Clint could complete, Loki waved his hand speaking,"Language!"

Clint's mouth was immediately covered with something yuck. Natasha made a face.

Tony mumbled under his breathe," That ,is capsicle's dialogue."

Steve moved his elbow a little enough to nudge Tony. Loki laughed.

" you," He spoke voluptuously," the avengers, are the reason for the failure of the chitauri attack. I would have been..." he trailed off, staring at Thor for a brief moment.

"brother,

you, you are the one who is the cause of ...the cause of ignorance of my father to me! All attention to you! Why even have me then?" his scepter glowered dangerously.

Tony leaned forward in his bonds. " shut up! You are the one who is the trouble ..!" Loki hissed and stepped up and his scepter glowed before a light thrusted at Tony .

He fainted.

Natasha growled. Steve flinched. Clint mumbled curses. "sometimes, you should shut your mouth." Loki smirked. Natasha screamed , her voice hoarse , rusty and un-natasha-like.

" Too scared to open our binds, Odinson?"

Loki smiled ear to ear and bent towards Natasha, pulling her hair. " Speaks the hider and seeker. "

The binds opened immediately. Natasha smiled internally. She tried leaping forward but her body was barely able to move.

" Nice try, widow..." Loki laughs," magic can make your bodies weak. I am not so foolish."

" I doubt."

Loki gave a pained expression.

"Whatever. I leave you to...converse." With a derisive laugh, he went out of the room.

Natasha removed the gag on Clint's mouth. Steve moved to Tony who whimpered. Thor tried waking Bruce, with no success. Clint crawled weakly towards the door and punched it. The whole cave resounded with sound of metal and Tony's groans. Steve sat back in defeat.

"we are trapped."

" oh! I didn't know!" Steve turned to look at Tony. He was horribly pallid and frail. His voice was totally lost. He clutched his chest like his life depended on it.

"God, are you alright?"

"Never been better."

Suddenly,Bruce moaned. Tony weakly clambered up to him. "Bruce? Comeon, bruce, wake up? Brucie-"

Bruce screamed bolting up ahead. He took his time to look around.

"How the hell are we here?" Bruce was panting, twice as pale as Tony.

" Mr. Mischief decided to press his luck too far." The answer came as expected from Tony. Bruce nodded anyway.

Tony grunted, tired from the recent battle.

"Anyone needs medical?" Natasha replied after running her gaze around the room.

" Nope." Tony went to the door and began poking the hinges dramatically. Steve wanted to hoot at the look of concentration on tony's face. The genius was needed here. Tony almost reminded him of Howard. God, he missed Howard.

A groan from Tony woke him from his thoughts as Tony fell down.

 **** **I am revamping this.**


	3. made up of soil

hey everyone! This took a long time, i know. Little non graphic torture, mud balling and whump. Technically i was free as my b'day gives me authorities. Here goes nothing.

steve ran up immediately as Tony fell. The aura dropped to a serious level. He had heard Tony saying that he had a heart condition. He thought he was joking.  
A serious joke, maybe.  
Bruce began checking his pulse against his protests. Natasha began searching his pockets (why?) clint was babling away while running his hands.  
"pulse is from the battle , maybe, can be the cause."  
"come on bruce," Tony protested,"I m fine, just fell down. Don't be a mother hen."  
Bruce could only smile.  
The smile reflected pity.  
Natasha took out a box from tony's pocket.  
"tash! I will do it! Leave it!" tony's voice slumped.  
Lousy Tony. Bad.  
"like you will! Take your shirt off!"  
Frantic Natasha. Bad . Bad  
"Isn't there a bathroom or something?"  
Steve pointed towards a small room at the side. It was untidy, but worked. Tony snatched the box from natasha's hand and walked inside, supporting himself with the wall.  
Weakness. Very bad.  
"tasha?" steve's voice was uncertain.  
" he will need some space.i am not telling."  
" so there is a problem , alright." clint jumped in.  
Horribly bad.  
bruce nodded. He brought his specs till the bridge of his nose. He shifted to follow Tony. Too late.  
Tony came out of the bathroom.  
"guess loki cares for hygiene."  
"Tony!" clint screamed.  
"what was that?" bruce's voice sounded like steel.  
"weakness, not slept from long."  
"tasha asked you to take off your shirt, that doesnt link."  
Natasha glared.  
"she could have been in the mood... "  
Natasha kicked Tony in his knee.  
"yeow!"Tony paused for a second, "ya know, I would like to sleep..." he yawned dramatically.  
Tony leaned down fiegning snores.  
" tasha?" bruce whispered. " please tell me. I hulk out from curiosity sometimes.  
Natasha opened her mouth but was immediately interupted by a sound.  
The door creaked again,light seeping in again.  
Speak of the devil. Even with your mouth closed.  
" hello, avengers.." loki could have rolled his eyes at the fake snoring.  
His eyes were sharp, venomous, malvolence clearly visible. His voluptous smile made Steve writhe.  
Tony grunted awake.  
" thought I might have some fun with you..."  
Loki immediately flitted near Tony,making him shudder.  
"and you, stark,are a twig in my neck." he grabbed Tony by the neck . Tony placed his frail, pallid hands on loki's merciless ones.  
Steve stepped forward. Loki waved his free hand and they were all in bonds, except began writhing and roaring.  
"brother, you will have your chance."  
Thor grunted, struggling against his bonds.  
Tony began choking, gasping. Then came the move.  
He headbutted with loki immediately, loki releasing his grasp.  
A knife produced in loki's hand.  
He flitted towards Tony who was still suffering from shock.  
He placed it on tony's neck.  
"your words may cause the knife to defy its limits."  
Thor fell back.  
"good." he looked towards Tony. " ready stark?"  
"chillax, dude, just tell me , FOR WHAT?"  
" I am just gonna make sure you see red." he smiled from ear to ear again. Tony decides immediately that he hates that smile.  
He moved the knife dramatically in the air before striking it in tony's shoulder.  
Tony flinched, but no reaction came.  
Bruce inhaled sharply. Steve lightly called out for Tony.  
" come on,let me try some.."  
He dug the knife harder.  
More blood oozed, but no voice from Tony.  
Natasha growled. Clint grimaced.  
Loki took the knife out. He smiled demonlously.  
His hands produced a wire, gleaming in electricity.  
Tony began breathing deeply.  
The touch of the wire made him feel numb. His body went ablaze.  
Cannotbreathecantbreatheunabletobreathe!  
Wontgiveincantgiveinunabletogivein!  
Time passed like hell. He forgot the sense of his body. The hidden arc reactor sparked a little.  
Tony focused on his breathing.  
Inhale,  
Exhale.  
Inhale,  
Exhale.  
He didnt feel it as he fell down with a thump.  
Xxxxxxxx  
"stark? Stay with me man!" tony regognized it as clint. When did. Loki leave?  
Tony felt cold, cold, soooo cold, he could have spared loki for a blanket.  
Bruce pressed something against his shoulder, making him yelp.  
"sorry."  
" whats dere in ma shoulder?" tony's voice slurred.  
" Steve tore a part of his shirt. We needed to stanch the bleeding."bruce replied.  
Tony nodded.  
He felt a brotherly feeling with bruce. Always calm. He never shouted at Tony.(90% because of hulk)  
"Tony?"  
"ya, bruce?  
" I understand his grudge with thor, but why loki resents you?"  
Tony shrugged.  
" i kinda monologued him... And dropped sarcasm on him... Sooo...ummm...serves me right!" it will be better not to tell them that he cant control me. Tony smiled internally.  
"hmmmhmmm, fine. "  
Tony curled up, smelling steve's shirt binded in his shoulder letting blessed darkness take over.  
Xxxx  
When tony woke up, a man with glasses was standing over him. His beard was white and he was smiling.  
"yinsen?"  
yinsen just smiled. He crept closer. Tony wanted to hug him , but he couldn't move.  
Yinsen crept closer and yanked the arc reactor out of his chest.  
Xxxxx  
"stark? Tony!"  
Captain spangles . Sheesh.  
tony pulled himself up. "its tony stark , not stark tony."  
Steve decided to ignore the pun.  
"you were screaming."  
"not a big fan of caves."  
Tony glanced around to see the avengers circling him.  
" why?" Bruce asked perplexed.  
Tony clamped his mouth shut.  
"Bruce." Natasha intervened." his captivity took place in a cave."  
"oh."  
Clint threw a tiny ball of mud at tony. Nice aim.  
Tony grunted, then threw a ball of mud at Steve. Who stared at Clint.  
"wha..."  
Too late. Captain spangles threw a mud ball at Clint, who ducked, and the ball hit Bruce instead.  
Bruce clenched his fingers, turning green for a minute but the magic barrier stopped him. Natasha ran to his aid and was immediately mud- balled.  
That is how the next time Loki visited, he ended up being mud -balled.


	4. mudding one's face has consequences

loki could scream.

loki could turn them all into toads.

loki could kill them.

the chilly cave was utterly silenced by the audacity of the situation. loki was standing still smiling (how?) with mud on his face. tony could giggle . a lot. butinstead he laughed. to exaggerate the situation. and ofcourse steve glared. clint felt like clapping. mud dripping from a supervillain! haha! bruce made a small mud ball in his hand. just in case. natasha stood unfazed.

loki glared.

"well," his voice was echoing. whot d hellllll?" having fun, are we?"

" the we you speak of," steve threw his words angrily to his own suprise." does not include you."

" it never did. that is why i am the better one. no one to protect. no one to fear. no one yo go home to." he smirked.

" atleast we are more brave." tony muttered.

loki felt like deja vu.

odin's voice. "you are a coward loki!"

coward?

coward?

coward?

oh.

coward.

so he was a coward, isnt it? lets play the cowardly game. he raised his sceptre and the avengers fell down unconscious.

xxxxxxx

the avengers woke up in a misty place. bruce silently arched his back and began waking tony up. (science bondings.) steve and natasha woke up on their own. thor woke up taking his time. clint needed the whole town to wake him until tony threatened to take his bean bag out from his room in the tower back home.

tge avengers looked around.

the place was a cold dessert, surrounded by small caves. the wind could make the hulk flinch.

oh shoot.


	5. mirror

Tony felt alright.

Except his burning back, and mind, panicked breathing and aching chest, he was fine.

Tony walked slowly, trying his best NOT to keep his pace with Rogers, happy when Steve scolded him for being slow. Strangely Tony felt really reassured to listen to his angry voice , mask in place.

Boom!

A big blast boomed at a distance ,a humvee getting caught up in it.

Snap. Deja vu.

Tony's breathe hitched, panic appearing on his face. He was ready to fall as gunfire resounded and a man ran out of the humvee.

"Stark! We need to help them!"

Steve's concerned and loud voice broke through Tony's mind. He clambered , mask slipping away, towards Steve and the rest of the avengers. The team was all business again, Tony feeling quite useless without his suit. His hair wavered as he ran slowly to Natasha, her poisture serene. Tony always felt strange around her. She knew that he was dying. It made Tony feel vunerable. Natasha always made him feel mushy through her bold words. Tony wanted to die with no regret, the world never forgetting and yet forgetting him. He wanted to disapear.

Though fury also knew about the palladium poisoning, he would not give him an off. "You wont tell others, you don't get a holiday." he had wasn't the one to hear orders, but letting the avengers know wasn't an had gulped pieces of his pride and left the room.

"Stark!" Clint yelled. He took Tony by his shoulder, shaking him.

Tony might have scoffed, but one look at Clint told it was a bad idea. His eyes were glassy, he looked ready to faint. He pointed at a man lying at there feet, chest bloody.

The man at their feet...was Tony stark.


	6. the journey begins

tony gulped hard. THE TONY STARK was lying in a bloody heap at the feet of the blew around with the heat of the flames.

clint was the first one to speak."is that you?" he said, eyeing the figure carefully. Clint's eyes were glossy , just like Tony.

" i-think," Tony stutered ," we are currently in Afghanistan...i hate loki." Tony looked at himself with laboured breathes.

footsteps.

Steve pulled Tony behind the remains of a humvee, along with the rest of the avengers.

voices.

Tony began to count his breathing. Bruce tried escaping under bruce's hold.

" _mil gaya!"_ _raspy, hoarse voices._

Tony closed his eyes prepared for what next.

" _yaha par chikitsak ki zazurat hai! Yaha khoon hai!" panicked voices._

tough hands, picking the body. They put him on a strechter. Steve glared Tony ominously. Were they seeing the past or the future? Better be the future. The arrogant man needed it.

Natasha , reading Steve, whispered." it's the past."

Steve stared even after Natasha turned away. How could this man be so strong?

the whole team followed the group of men silently, realising that they were not visible.

" Steve," tony whispered weakly." can we please not follow them?"

Steve was astounded by the please." no tony, we need to know what happened in your past."

" can you watch yourself being tort...steve i cant... Leave me here Steve..."

" tony! What kind of a hero are you if you cant face your weakness?!" Steve roared. A few men from the bandit group turned behind. Steve and tony fell silent.

" tony." Natasha whispered, pulling him close." we know it is scary, but we are in a world Loki created, we may never get out if we don't abide by what he wants."

tony nodded. Natasha hugged tony for a second before patting his back and jogging to join the avengers. Tony followed silently.

it was being a rough road ahead.

 **okay, credit for the Hindi statements does not go to anyone, it is my national language." mil gaya!"- " found him!" " yaha chikitsak ki zaroorat hai! Yaha khoon hai!"- " we need a doctor here! There is blood!" thank you and review.**


	7. Chapter 7

this is not a is the tribute to my nation, , 26 January, is the republic day of India. The constution of India came into affect this day.

 _the foriegn air may win my heart, but i will be with my country forever._

a salute to India, my silent tribute

jai hind..


	8. filler! exams to blame

screaming. Shouting. Moaning.

crying . Praying. Cutting.

.pain.

Steve could only feel a few emotions when he saw tony screaming on the bed. God, they were cutting him open!

the cave was cold. It was freezing. But looking at tony, it looked that he was on fire. Because they were cutting him open. When he was awake. The present tony was taking deep breathes, his eyes closed. His hands were on his ears, trying to block the screams. Natasha was kneeling beside him. They both were turning away from the scene. The avengers watched, dumbstruck.

" i- i think, we should consider going back..." Steve muttered, kneeling down towards tony. Natasha glared at him ominously. Steve gave a questioning glare as a return gift.

tony looked quite out of his normal character.

steve pulled him up. oh the courteous captain. He paced towards the door, suprisingly more eager than tony, to get out.

thump!

Steve crashed right in the door. "we can feel the things?" Steve asked. Natasha nodded. Steve tried pushing and pulling the door.

it didn't budge.

" i don't think Loki wants us to turn away." Bruce pointed out. His voice was hoarse. And the usual warm orbs were dark green. Clint vomited at the corner.

" well," Natasha said with a flicker of emotion in her eyes, "we are screwed."

 **pardon me for the short and late chapter, i have my exam on fifteen feb and father is gonna murder me if i am found writing. Wish RIP to me.(rest in pieces.) reviews are fruits.**


	9. meaning of being a hero

**Author is very happy!**  
 **Hey ! My exams are over! I am soooooooooooo happy! I cant explain myself! I AM SOOO HAPPY, I WILL UPDATE ALL MY STORIES! Yay!**  
 **They watched as the terrorists hauled Tony towards a uncomfortable cot. They dropped him .**  
 **THEY. HOOKED. HIM. TO. A . CAR. BATTERY.**  
 **A. FRIGGING. BATTERY.**  
 **RIGHT. IN . HIS. CHEST.**

That must have hurt. Even in tony's unmoving form, the avengers saw pain.  
Steve wanted to ask Tony , how the hell is his chest is fine?!  
Wait.  
Tony never showed his chest to anyone.  
" _hey Tony! Wanna have a dip in the pool with me?"_  
 _"no."_

" _hey Tony, come, we have to go for the shield physique test."_  
 _" I have it sheduled seperately."_

 _"Tony , arent you feeling hot in that jacket?"_  
 _"no."_  
***

They sat down in a corner, still not used to the invisibility. Who can be used to invisibility ?!  
A man, nearly bald, sat down lightly by Tony's cot, as they dacoits left, silently caressing tony's face. Natasha followed every wrinkle of his finger.  
The present Tony was ashen. He looked worse than having a hangover.  
Or being dead.  
The genius was taking stuttering breathes. And he was..why was he clutching his chest? Did he recieve damage to his chest?  
That could be. Steve, being a man lost in time, still couldnt place the fact that this was the past. He hadnt read tony's file. Who would? Even a man lost time had heard about the genius's tantrums.  
But then, hey flashbacks.  
Natasha took Tony in her solid arms. Her expression was cold, but her body showed understanding.  
Pity was not something Tony stark would want, and Natasha understood it well.

Tony hid his face in natasha's arms, hiding himself from the world. He shivered.  
Clint stood, alongswith bruce, still calming himself. Clint still looked sick.  
Tony emerged from natasha's embrace, no more Tony. Steve regognised mr. Stark in that body. The human behind the mask was gone.  
"come on, lets get over it. We will get out, soon."  
Steve was shaken by the man's voice. To say that he was crying seconds ago... The simple act showcased all the masks of Tony stark.  
" Tony..." bruce blurted out, voice wavering.  
"brucie," Tony smiled painfully. "we are the avengers. We have to be mentally strong to be a hero. I can take it."  
Bruce nodded.  
The nearly bald turned towards the direction of the whispering, but turned back, finding no one in the dark abyss.  
"who is he?" clint asked.  
"thats...yinsen." Tony immediately replied. His voice sounded to feeble to speak the man's name.  
Natasha nudged clint in the arm. The assasin took the sign seriously and quitened up.

The Tony in front of them jerked awake.

 **I tried my best in this chapter.i am no longer writing this on the run. I am gonna get my exam results on 6 march. Today is 3 march. Pray for me guys.**

reviews are gold , silver and fuel!


	10. yinsen

Author is too lazy to bold this note.  
I used to have my narrarator in my misc. Books fanfics(hilarious) only, but he is a rebel. He did rebel in my story 'traumatized' I am not so happy with him interrupting-  
Author is done beraring the readers.  
No I am not! See, told you. He is just like that. Always-  
Author is finally-  
No! Quiet!  
So hi there, I am really happy... For what? Ya I am not so used to writing a fanfic, even after writing so many. The fault goes to my school. They compress our word limit. Seriously, who can write a story in 125 words? No use to rebel, I once wrote a 429 word horror story in my 5.5 out of 6 for the 'beautiful' content. Which was pretty much a hunch of exclamation marks.  
Author is finally-  
Why do you keep interrupting me?!  
Now, I have my vacations, I will try my best to write nice, long and detailed chapters. No promises.  
Author is-

Let it be.  
😎Author is😉 finally 😅done berating the readers.

The Tony in front of them jerked awake.

The avengers except Tony and bruce, ran towards the cot. Bruce sighed, at the same time as Tony. They began walking casually towards the cot.  
Clint shuddered. He kneeled next to the cot . The Tony on the cot was ashen, face lined with pain. His eyes were sunken in and glossy. His first action was reaching out for the tube in his nose.  
"wait." yinsen spat immediately, but casually, in English. He checked in Tony, before removing the tube himself. Tony whimpered in pain.

Natasha observed tony's face. He looked confused, scared, curious...angry? Natasha would never know.  
Yinsen looked ...calm. How the hell was he so calm?! His tranquil fingers had a calming affect on Tony. Both the present Tony and the past Tony relaxed with a single look at yinsen's face.  
"who are you?" Tony asked, rising from the cot. Yinsen helped him up.  
For the first time, Tony noticed the a wire ,make that wires, on his chest.  
"I am-"yinsen began,smiling, but was immediately interupted by Tony . "what the hell is this?!" his voice was shaking, partially from the pain.  
"you were panicked." clint pointed out.  
" was there any other emotion to show?" the present Tony shot back, little harshly. Observing the look on clint's face, he took a deep breath and repeated a little softly. " I mean, I was panicking because...you know...it could have been anything..."  
It wasnt much of an explaination, but clint,being a shield agent, understood.  
"its a car battery." yinsen explained. " attached to an electromagnet. It keeps the shrapnel away from your heart."  
"what shrapnel?"  
Yinsen sighed. " you should know that."  
Tony closed his eyes deep in thought.  
" yeah." he muttered dejectively. " a bomb, exploded on my face."  
"thought so."  
Tony looked at the gauze covering his chest again. It was coated with black blood.  
Bruce took a sharp intake of air. Ahhh, refreshing. The only thing which didnt stress the hulk.  
Steve looked at Tony out of the corner of his eyes. Man, he was good. His expression was unreadable, eyes bored. His black shirt made him nearly invisible ( more than he actually was. Wait, how the hell can they see each other?!...loki! Hate you. Steve was glad for the fact that they could see each other. Tony was not.)  
Yinsen smiled sympathetically.  
The door opened.  
Four men, bulky and untidy, entered the roo- area.  
"aapka swagat hai, Tony stark, duniya ka sabse bada milkar bahut khushi hui." he smiled, spreading his arms.{a/n this is Hindi. I dont know afghanistani. ;) }  
Tony looked questionably at the men. Yinsen stepped forward. " he says, ' welcome, Tony stark, mass murderer of the world.' he is happy to meet you." yinsen explained that the terrorists wanted him to build the jericho missile.  
"did you?" Steve asked.  
Tony shook his head, refusing to answer as if he hadnt heard the question.

"no." the past Tony spat out , confidence never shaken.  
The leader said nothing. Two men came inside with a tub of freezing water and the avengers could only yelp as the past tony's head went in.

Author is done-  
Oi!  
How was it? Tell me ! Tell me! Review!  
Narrarator?  
~I am still pissed of.  
Sorry.  
😊😎author is finally done berating the narrarator and the readers.


	11. waterboarding

The avengers watched in horror as the past tony flailed in the man's grip. Muffled shouts erupted from the tub.  
Yinsen kept screaming against the men, but fell silent when two guns were raised in his direction.  
Steve gasped. Waterboarding was unexpected. He never expected the genius to have experienced torture.  
Bruce was dangerously green . Natasha glared at him at the corner of her eyes, barely able to control her own anger.  
Clint , however, never had much control over his anger, so he just ran and hurled a porridge bowl at the man who kept tony's head under the water.  
It hit his head with a clang.  
The man looked amused, releasing tony's head. Tony came to the surface, gasping and wheezing to himself.  
He turned towards yinsen , eyebrows hidden in his hair.  
" aapko kuch kehna hai?" ( a/n Hindi for "do you want to speak anything?")  
Yinsen spat a sharp denial, eyes never leaving tony. He was still recovering.  
The present tony glared at Clint, no emotion present in his eyes.  
" i couldn't watch you being tortured." Clint whispered. Tony nodded.  
The man smirked, sending another man towards yinsen, and returned to tony, pulling his hair and dunking him in the tub.  
The present tony watched, unshaken. If Loki wanted him to break down, he would cement his walls. His hands were clenched and his teeth were gritted, but he just stood at his position, as hard as stone.  
The man pulled tony pulled tony out.  
" ...no."  
His head went back in.  
Steve took deep breathes. Tony's muffled screams rang throughout the cave, making it impossible to stay calm.  
The past tony convulsed.  
" what's happening?!" steve asked, eyes wide.  
"the battery." tony pointed at his chest, " was electrocuting me."  
Steve did not reply.  
The man pulled him out again.  
" I ,..., s-said no!" Tony screamed.

"you only care for yourself...,"

His head went down.

Tony struggled for a few minutes, before going completely still.  
The man frowned, pulling Tony out. Tony barely had a chance to breathe before the man kicked him in the stomach. Tony curled up into himself.  
Another kick to his arm.  
Another to his chest, just nearby the battery.  
Tony screamed in pain.  
" _big man in a suit . Take that of and what are you?"_

A knife appeared our of no where, dangerously close towards tony's eye.

Tony said nothing.

the man smiled, moving towards yinsen.

.  
.

.

" I will... m-make it! "

" _a survivor."_

 **and I came back to this story ! Dude, I am a messed up writer. Actually what happens to me is that whenever I see a review, I get piped up and write right away! anyway! Please review!**


	12. to escape!

The past Tony took deep breathes as the men left him and yinsen alone . Tony fell back, as if each ounce of his energy was depleted. He gasped , eyes open wide. Yinen moved to help him.

The avengers gaped, amused at what they just saw.  
The most affected was Steve, crestfallen. He never expected the genius to care about others.  
Bruce was literally a living example of rage in human form. His hands were clenched at his sides as tremors overtook his body.  
Clint and Natasha, both stayed behind the group, spouting Russian curses familiar to no one.  
Tony tried to maintain his composture, but panic smudged the appealing act.  
" I didnt," he began with shaken confidence , " do that because I wanted to. They were about to hurt yinsen. I didnt want to make them weapons...i didnt make.."  
Steve gaped and his jaws hit the ground when he finally realised who was Tony blaming.  
Himself.  
And it wasnt even his fault.

" Tony , most of the people would have broken down much before you did! " Bruce pointed out, astonished at the fact that Tony was even more insecure than him.  
" But-"  
"no 'buts'. You are not weak. And you already had told me that you didnt make what they wanted, right?" bruce asked, voice varying from warning to tenderly loving.  
Tony nodded slowly.  
The past Tony pulled himself together.  
" y-yinsen..."  
Yinsen nodded with barely supressed affection and praise as he moved closer to Tony, ruffling his hair. His eyes were plastered over the battery, gracefully and darkly inspecting the burns near the electromagnet.  
"I -I ...will get you out."  
Yinsen gaped increduously. He couldnt believe that even after getting tortured, the man refused to break.  
"But how?! There are cameras watching us! And you have a heart condition! "  
" yinsen." Tony said soothingly quietening him up.  
"I have a plan."

 **so that felt like a nice place to end it, even if it was small. I also regret to inform that my school reopens from tomorrow, so updates will be slow. But day after tomorrow is Sunday,** **so ...huahaahahahahaahaaa!** **My bro also has his entrance exam to get addmission to another school, pray for him guys!**

 **p.s, Is anybody bummed that infinity war will come out in 2018?! Coz I** **am! Why marvel?!**

 **seriously, if marvel kills Tony, I am dropping out of the fan following. I watched the video, dont kill Tony!**

and review ;)


	13. they never knew

**So hey guys, i am sorry i didn't update for a while, my classes began, and guess what? I am buried in homework. I never used to write my work in pieces, but now...we got an app called snap homework , now teachers are piling us with homework. This is wrong! I get messages at the break of the day to keep my geo notebook! Gah!**  
 **My course has gotten more tough. The formative assesments are now of 40 marks instead of 20 , RIP to me. The exams will now be back to back, no gap in between. atleast 4 to 6 chapters for one got broken in three pieces, teachers loves screaming, .**  
 **And guess what?**  
 **Pressure.**  
 **I am pretty sure i am using the darkest part of my bad vocabulary to curse the teachers who said eighth class is easy.**  
 **So as i told you guys that updates will be slow, i take it back.**  
 **Updates will be super slow.**  
 **Even if i get free time, i either read other fics on ffn and ao3 , surf on youtube, nigahiga had me addicted ,( anyone else?!) or just stare into the space to calm myself or think of new ideas. Like seriously, the only thing making me sleep was the stories I used to weave at night, being posted here. I am getting a lot of headaches lately, nothing new for me, but this time, I know its not because of sinustis, its because of my phone. And i do not want glasses. I feel dizzy these days, I space out. And I get colds easily, again nothing new. Its like , I opened my fridge for a second, and voila!**  
 **Atchoo!**  
 **I am pretty sure I will be depressed if this keeps up, specially when my Math teachers sends me homework at the hw app as well as at the school.**  
 **I dont have much time for anything else to say, so read on!**

Chapter I-dont-know-what-number.

"what plan can you accomplish in a cave ?!" Steve asked , astonished at Tony's confidence to get out.  
Steve knew that Tony was a stubborn one, but this was a new level.  
Steve waited and took in the confusion in tony's features.  
"you didnt read my file." it definately sounded like it wasnt a question.  
Steve shook his head. Who would read a man's file if his whole godamn life was pasted in the media?!  
"so how many people read my file?" Tony asked, out of sheer curiousity.  
Natasha and bruce raised their hands.  
"birdbrain?"  
" everyone knows about you man , come on."  
Tony nodded , pissed. The media didnt know why he created iron man. Tony just could not fabricate the impression, that his so called team didnt even bother to read his file.  
He sighed, slipping down into a sitting position on the ground.  
" we cannot stand for three months, can we?"  
Natasha nodded, before slipping to the floor, with Steve. Bruce looked around, only to see Clint's disgusted look, but one look at Thor and he to sat down.  
The past Tony slung his hand around Yinsen's shoulder as he carried him to the cot. Tony hissed.  
" we need to get rid of this thingy." the past Tony muttered, hand pointing at the battery he held in his left hand.  
" what?...this?" Yinsen asked, eyes narrowing at the car battery. His expression was dark , giving away no specific emotion as he dropped Tony as lightly as possible on the cot.  
" yup. This is not going to last long, i guess. " tony spoke, this time more audible.  
" what can we do? We have neither -"  
" i said i have a plan. We will get the materials too."  
Yinsen laughed. " there are cameras."  
" you have a better plan?" Tony asked. Steve shuddered at the hopeless look on the genius's face. Tony was never hopeless. Never.  
Yinsen shook his head.  
" Then my plan is perfect. The stuff i need for the missile, i can recycle it to construct a substitute. And my plan."  
Tony smiled.

 **another thing, i am sorry for the grammar and capitalization, my phone changes the words itself. I cant** **recheck because ...homework! Review!**


	14. new troubles

**hey guys!**

 **no, seriously, hey.**

 **news flash, i was going through the last chapter, i told you that i was getting head aches, well, i didnt need any meds, i needed...GLASSES! so yeah, i got two diferrent powers for my glasses, 0.75 and 1. so i got my phone banned,from which i was updating my works. result, late update.**

 **actually though father didnt stress on the phone hike, i did. because i am only thirteen . the doc said that at this age, and power, if i do not stress my eyes, the glasses will go!**

 **but till then, i look like a nerd. imagine a darkish ( not black, not racist) girl with hair only till her chin with FRIGGING. BLACK. GLASSES.**

 **no wonder, i got the name nerd in class, they dont stress it, but with my scholar batch coming up, it is only a matter of weeks.**

 **anyway,you must have noticed, my chapters are small with grammatical mistakes with irregular capitalization, BLAME MY PHONE. it auto corrects my typing. also when you type in your phone, all your small chapters look big.**

 **i keep my readers first, so i fished out my sister's red , dell laptop right out of her fotress, battling an army of alien cats and dodging her musical lair! yaah! *ahem* because she is gone to give her exam, laptops are allowed for me. and i am not even looking at the screen as i type, son..no eye stress. look at that, father.**

 **anyway, here is the chapter i wrote to-day ;)**

 **chapter 14, i guess.**

the avengers gawped in amazement as the terrorists came and kept chunks of material they didnt regognise as Tony kept barking orders.

" -i need i nicely lit." Tony ordered one of then men, who made a growling sound, but left without a complaint. Yinsen watched from the back, observing everyone carefully. Natasha felt a strange sense of deja vu, remembering the time when Clint used to watch her with the same expression when they barely knew each other.

The past Tony pulled something out of the heap, observing it carefully with eyes betraying his experience in the field. his determined poisture was bathed in sweat and water, no one could say which, because even after Yinsen's drying him with a towel, Tony was still wettish from the recent waterboarding. it was suprising , because you only drown one's face in a tub during water boarding, but the terrorists had nearly dunk Tony fully in the tank.

Bruce looked around, timidly, but curiously, observing the vile and dirty stuff around him. His usually cute brown ruffles seemed to be laid with sweat, with agitation, maybe, because one look at the others told him that he, steve and thor were the only one unnaffected by the cold. The past Tony was litterally shuderring at and uncontrollable pace. he began working with the matter provided to him, only realising that he was numb with cold when Yinsen dropped a blanket on his shoulders. He gave a small warm smile. A smile which made Natasha smile. because she suddenly realised how less Tony showed his emotions.

The present tony felt pangs of pain erupting through his chest...oh no...

Clint's face scrunched up in confusion.

"hey, how are we not hungry?"

Bruce drowned in a deep lair of confusion. "huh."

Thor shrugged, and so did Tony, when they were inquired about the curious fact.

Steve felt like the old days had came back. he never used to feel hungry when he was a child. after the super soldier program, he felt like an elephant. He ate tons of food now, it felt never liked asking for help, and now he was totally dependent on Tony for paying for the food he gobsmacked. He felt his face turn red in shame when he finally realised how much Tony did for him. **( it is about time you do, dumbass!)**

Tony began rubbing his chest.

Bruce eyed him cautiously, but didnt say anything as the sounds of hammering erupted from the cave.

The past Tony began hammering a small , cylindrical piece of...something. he hammered until a litte wedgy chip pushed its way out. he pulled it out and hammered again.

"shouldnt you take a break?" Bruce asked, worried. " you were waterboarded and tortured..."

" there was no time." although Bruce didnt notice anything, Natasha noted thepain laced upon his voice, and realised that there were a few minutes left before the arc reactor went off.

She saw a small washroom , door ajar.

There was no way that the avengers were going to let them get away with the poisoning this time. Tony was a precious member to the team, Captain may be, or may not be included. Natasha didnt care. Tony was coughing right away, trying to keep it as light as possible, as it was evident that the past Tony was hearing strange voices.  
"tony?!" Steve exclaimed.

"Is something the matter, man of iron?" thor asked politely, but in alarm. He mouthed a sorry to Natasha as the past Tony began to look around again.

Tony looked at Natasha. " i c-cant-" he gasped. "it h-hurts...Nat...it has lost power..."

Four faces turned towards Natasha. she raised her hand to silent Bruce as soon as he opened his mouth.

Natasha ignored the whispers and bent down , over tony, and pulled his shirt up.

 **there you go guys! i tried my best, but typing at a laptop is what i hate. ya know, the mouse and caps lock..duh. well, ii am tired, and am too lazy to erase that extra I . hehe. actually, i was able to write this chapter because father has gone to the office, so to speak. my mum is a dear. she is reaalllly sweeeeettttt...i actually didnt get much sleep *yawn* because... day before yesterday, a relative dropped by. guess what, he ate at home, then ate outside with father and THEN came home and ate dinner. no, the irritating fact was not that he was eating so much, it is alright. people can eat. BUT. father brought food from outside, he brought south indian, at ten thirty at the night. so there goes my sleep. and yesterday, i just couldnt sleep, because my sis, sis? i call her didi. in hindi, we call sisters didi. yeah, so she kept giggling. she is a bufoon. you know, actually, once i had to share a room...my grandpa and my father were sleeping in a room which was seperated by our room by only a set of curtains, and we kept giggling for no reason. i nearly strangled myself by my pillow in a useless attempt to refrain my giggles...i also did video call my ma who was in a different room, and we got scolded..**

 **imagine my horror when popsicle (that is what i call my father) told us that he heard some giggling at night...:-0**

 **also updates will be slow. i am also writing horror stories on ao3 because my friend khushi loves them. it is wierd, my name is khushboo and hers is khushi. so i call her ecouti et regardi, just for fun. ;) she isnt really bugged bby that and she calls me ecoutez et regardons, but recently we have bieng friendly-fighting because she wants to be ecoutez et regardons, but i like calling her ecouti et regardi, so there goes...**

 **oh...and does my name sound wierd...? oh dang i revealled my real name... no worries. here in india, everybody is like, hide your name..dont reveal it on the web, but what can someone do with my name? so my real name is khushboo , which literally means a good smell in hindi.**

 **anyway again! review!**


	15. Chapter 15

sorry guys.

no! I ain't abandoning my story, i hate authors who do that! I love writing this story and the support you all give me, just my laptop broke, so next chapter will be late. But i wrote the half of it!

i will try my best to upload the chapter from the computer.

I AINT ABANDONING THIS PIECE OF SHIT! DONT SQUINT AT THE SCREEN!

new chapter next week .


	16. the tide turns

**hey guys!**

 **no, seriously, hey.**

 **did i seriously repeat my drill? what the hell.  
**

 **i am back!**

 **ugh, author's notes are really awkward, how do you guys manage this?**

 **let me do it again...**

 **hey guys!**

 **see, i didnt abandon this fic. proud of myself. and i got sick. guess tony dropped curses at me. well, i went to school yesterday, and i felt really delirous and sleepy, i hadnt slept the night before, and i didnt realise i was sick because my best friend, amanpreet (female! dont get ideas!) was feeling sleepy too. i came home, and made it to the couch, fast asleep. now, mom really knows when i get sick because i never sleep in the afternoon. NEVER. so guess what was my gift? a big chapatti sized paracetamol. (did i spell it right?) i went to the doc, he gave me even more gross meds. like a red coloured tablet which totally looks like gems.**

 **my throat hurts when i swallow or eat. it is bad luck because i was aiming for the 100% attendance award this year... :(**

 **i actually got a review from an anonymous person. it was in german, i really thought that the person was saying "you are a shit writer." i was kinda depressed about the fact that igot a negative review. guess what guys, i checked on google translate, it really said "please update."  
**

 **now he may not think that i am a shit writer, but i think i am a shit translater.**

 **ANYWAY...i am thinking of making my own channel at youtube. i mean like small videos which do not include me, if anyone in my family finds me vlogging... i shall do it when i am older. even though mum is a dear. she is very supportive towards my hobbies. and that is why, i gift you all this chapter.**

 **here calls father.**

 **shit.**

 **...**

 **i dont know, but he didnt ask what was i doing, otherwise i wuld have gotten chewed out.**

 **hey! author's notes are fun!**

 **and fight4whales (i think i butchered your name..) on your suggestion, i decided to try agents of shield, but i ended up watching agents of secret stuff! it was hilarious!**

 **did i seriously just write that?**

 **sorry guys, i am just a little bit delirous, so forgive me if the grammar and capitalisation is messed up.**

 **disclaimer: the avengers are not mine because like has them.**

 _ **chapter-whose-number-i-do-not-know**_

natasha knew horror when she saw it.

she was an assasin, causing horror was her job. getting information out in anyway . she regognised horror. the horror of her victims when she picked up a weapon. the horror of the people she interrogated when she neared them with her fatal charm.

the black widow was unbothered by the horror, natasha avoided it.

she expected the same look of horror on the face of the avengers, but she never knew that she showcased the same look when she looked at the arc reactor.

the once beautiful device now showed signs of destructive behaviour. the blue warmth was gone, and black viens surrounded it. strange lines ran up towards his neck. the soft buzzing was replaced by tony's harsh breathing.

Natasha quickly pulled out the reactor.

"Natasha what the hell-"

"dont disturb me steve.'

natasha pulled out the used paladium core out of the reactor. her hands burned with the unatural temperature, but years of training got ahead of her. she opened the box and put a new core in the reactor, the blue light came back, flickering.

natasha inserted the reactor inside tony's chest.

Tony convulsed. his chest burned with new energy. he felt energetic yet weak. tony couldnt place his head around the irony of the fact that the device which was keeping him alive was killing him.

"Tasha?"

"they need an explaination."

"What the hell tony?!" steve exploded. " What the hell is that ?!"

Tony took a deep breathe. he felt like spalterring himself on the floor.

"it...this is an arc reactor, i made it as a substitute for the car battery." tony dropped his gaze , trying to hide the hurt in his eyes.

Bruce turned greenish. " doesnt it hurt?"

"it does... sometimes.. yeah."

Clint pushed steve and bruce apart. " why didnt you tell us?!"

thor pulled back, totally alien to the situation.

"i-"

" because it makes you weak."

everyone turned towards steve, whose expression changed from an emotional one to a neutral one.

tony nodded.

" and dont you think you are weak?"

tony blinked. this wasnt expected. he always knew captain hated him.

Tony was so deep in thought that he didnt even notice when steve produced a knife from out of nowhere and stabbed tony in his stomach.

 **so hey guys once again! i know i just upturned the whole story, but adding twists is what i like to do.**

 **p.s. the beginning author's note is about two to three weeks old, i got buried under eschool pressure, so please note i am not sick now. but i have a nasty cough:)**

 **and god, it is so warm in delhi, like 45 celsius already, i dont know what it is in fahrenhiet, please dont kill me if i spelled that wrong.**

 **i gotta say something.**

 **SUMMER VACATIONS!**

 **golly i am so happy. i didnt even rest, i straight away started writing this since i came home from school. i got loads of homework and am going to my grandmas house in agra for a week or so, so see ya guys later!**

 **(p.s, dear anonym, i hope you were not offended but i cant speak german, but i really appreciate the fact that you a german and yet are reading my english stories. thank you for the support,keep writing german so i might learn to speak german some day :)**

 **oh golly i love interacting with my readers.**

 **guess who downloaded all harry potter parts and is getting her series today?**

 **what am i doing, BYE PEOPLE. YOUR PARENTS WILL SUE ME IF I KEEP YOUR EYES STUCK TO A SCREEN.**


	17. delusions

**ohmahgawd.**

 **we reached 27 reviews! yatah!**

 **lemme change this. when i rechecked my account, it is 29 reviews.**

 **i have never got so many reviews in any of my stories. NEVER.**

 ***damnit sis, stop playin music, writer's on job***

 **so hey guys, hope you are not having summers like these. it is very hot in here, wait, there are many of you who are not even having a summer. wow. i always kinda fancied getting in touch with people from other countries and asking the time and weather. like i am a curious little girl. i could barely stop my mouth when koreans came to our class last year. yup, our school collabs with korean and german schools, just to show off the privilages that they seemingly provide us with.**

 **now , people, i heard a great deal about nicki minaj, i love rapping.**

 **i tried watching anaconda.**

 **i am scarred for life.**

 **and guys1 i started a youtube channel! yay! basically it is a boring channel, i have uploaded 4 videos till now. it is a pretty boring channel , though if you are curious, it goes by my real name, khushboo verma , i have not uploaded my real pics on that ;) please dont follow me yet. i uploaded beats made by mixpads and a clash royale gameplay with my bro ...  
**

 **my sis is moving. if she sees i am writing fanfics about the avengers, m dead.**

 **and guys there is holiday homework.**

 **like so much hindi, i am not any good at hindi. like i should be because it is my national language, but english is given more importance here even after our history with the englishmen. *people dont get offended, it's just a history reference, actions of the old people do not get washed up on the innocent next generation.**

 **readers have full right to complain about the length of my chapters, i like writing author's notes than writing the actual chapter.**

 **then again, i might tell you that i just turned the story apart in the last chapter. so i decided to start writing the next day.**

 **also , blame the cyber attacks.**

 **you might have heard, there is a series of software attacking going on now. so you can get the idea when someone see "this connection is not secure, the person logging in can be compromised" while opening one's ao3 account, they decide to come back to fanfiction net.**

 **girls and boys, i also have an announcement.**

 **now, i boasted way to much about the reviews to my family. now my sis actually knows someone who writes too, i do not know where, she wants to read my stories. well, people know i write, they dont know what i write, i do not want them to know about my angst fics. so i went to my a03 account when it felt safe to do so. i had to delete 3 of my avengers fics :(**

 **so i decided to write today because father is watching the india vs. pakistan cricket match. therwise lord knows how much math i would have to study today...man...**

 **so here we go!**

steve pulled the knife out. he took a deep breathe. he smiled.

The knife found his way back again. This time deeper.

tony gasped.

tony huched over and fell to the floor, knife lodged deep in his stomach. blood began to spill on the floor.

"s-steve...?" Tony gasped for his breathe.

The past tony and yinsen disintegrated, and the cave walls turned back to the cave they were primarily in. steve stood, bold and defiant. He walked towards Tony, footsteps light.

"Pathetic little weakling, arent you? hiding under your masks.." Steve kicked Tony in the stomach. tony grunted from the pain and rolled over to his back. A single tear made it's way out of the corner of his eye. The iron of his soul broke under the sheer act of betrayal. If it was someone else, tony could have believed that the person was a clone or something, but steve never liked him enough.

Steve took the knife out from tony's stomach. The only thing Tony couldnt understand was everything.

why wasnt the others saying anything?One look around and tony got the idea. the avengers , INCLUDING steve were tied in a tight group. they were screaming, but tony couldnt hear. his attention was on the person with the knife. Steve's usual features morphed into regognizable green capes and evil eyes.

Loki.

'how did you like my surprise?"

Tony felt dizzy and confused. there was a puddle of blood around him already, and none of this made sense to him. the avengers were there with him the whole time.

Were they?

Loki bent over Tony and caressed the black bangs falling on Tony's face. " you look quite angry over here, dont you?"

Tony growled. He tried to get up but discarded the idea as pain shot through his stomach once more. He groaned.

just as tony opened his mouth to speak, a small ball of mud hit loki straight in the eyes.

'what the...?!"

Loki moved towards clint who had bent his wrist oddly to hit loki again, but he missed as loki pressed the knife, dripping with tony's blood, to his neck.

" you wont mind if i silence you forever would you?!"

" actually-"

An explosion sounded throughout the cave .

 **i felt like ending it here because everyone ios sitting with me right now and i dont want them to know what am i typing. certainly not angst.**


	18. Agents from sheild

**hey guys! wassup!**

 **ooh, its raining cats and dogs here, my grandma's brother and her wife came home yesterday night.*smiles before telling the tale* they come to delhi every month because he is getting cancer treatment here. so i spent a day alone with my siblings. and it raaained. and our guests had left the clothes on the clothes line, and as soon as sis stepped out, there came a huge blst. this happened right now too, when they were re-drying there clothes, lol.**

 _ **this was kinda unessecary, but i like telling you guys tales.**_

 _ **so its COLD. brrr..**_

 _ **i also heard that there was an explosion in pakistan because an oil truck turned over, people ran to collect the oil, someone blew a frigging ciggarette, and boom. i feel sorry as a human, but am not gonna sympathise. the families of our army cry too when there loved ones are sent back with mutilated bodies. my sympathy, my empathy, lies with them. all pakistaanis reading this, this is nothing to be offended on, i am merely supporting my country which trys so hard to establish peace with you. you cannot believe the horror we people see when videos of terrorists cutting of heads spreads, and i have seen the videos.**_ **XXX  
**

 **So guys, updates are gonna be slow, reasons:**

 **holiday homework:**

 **coz i have to handwrite each document and project, and the only help m getting is for the poster.**

 **Schools are about to open**

 **GUESTS**

 **these keep coming, and each person tries either to compare me to their kids, or try to stop me while i study. the guy at my house literally stares at me while i study.**

 **oh god this authors review was exhausti-**

 **oh! by the by, i wanted to reply to a guest who reviewed:**

 **dear guest:**

 **am sorry, i didnt get what were you tryna say, i am so sorry, but it were kind enough to review and read my profile, thanks.**

 **p.s , i think i got the message wrong, but i scrolled through the whole avengers archive, so many fanfics!**

chapter 18, i guess  


There were a series a explosions, sounding close each minute. Tony felt a small smile of truimph forming on his lips. _Finally._ A sharp pang of pain erupted for his stomach and his smile faded away, unnoticed by the inhabitants of the room. He closed his eyes.

Loki smiled too. He smile didnt even falter as people dressed in black erupted from different parts of the cave, breaking nearly every wall present at the location.

Shield.

All guns were pointed at Loki.

"Hands in the air!" Tony regognised the voice a fury's.

"ooh, let's see who came by... i was just having some fun.." Loki smiled malvolently.

An agent shot Loki with a small dart.

"what is that?" Loki asked , perplexed inside, but never losing the smirk.

"that," the agent said, " will keep you from using your powers."

There was silence in the cave for a few minutes. An agent dropped next to Tony. Another freed the avengers.

"Tony needs help!" Bruce growled. Now the affect of Loki's magic was fading, he was gaining control over his alter ego. " We got him." The agent replied.

"NO YOU DIDNT!" Loki screamed. He threw his scepter at the agent tending to Tony. The agent yelped , and fell. The blood spilled from his wounds straight on Tony, who gasped as a tear spilled from his eye. Why did people always sacfrice themselves for him?

No matter how much training each agent had recieved, they were stumped . Loki laughed.

"And for your dart, it's useless!" He threw it right in fury's face, " I hope that you hope your loved ones are safe!"

He disintegrated into the thin air.

 **i myself feel that this chapter is small is boring, but everyone is staring at me, and mum is working alone and i feel bad for her,,,,,so bye!**

 **review!**


	19. HAITUS :(

so , yeah.

I am putting my stories on haitus, now this is nothing new for my older stories, but i decided to issue a formal notice for my major stories, which still have ongoing readers :).

So.

The cover, I did upload a chapter recently, and 'Where the line breaks' ,as far as that goes, I was writing a chapter ,like since the indian independance day...Guess i could never finish that , you guys can pitch in ideas for both the stories ... as for one of my friends wanted a cameo, i am working on it! :)

I do remember saying on one of my stories, "since exams are over, I am gonna upload more faster.." Well, dream on, school has taken a terrible turn, since CBSE has changed the pattern and has brought board exams back to the ..i dunno... Then, our mid terms are closing up, i hate the story books given in the syllabus except the hound of baskervilles,its like "bharat ki khoj"(the finding of india) and Munshi premchand's collection of stories...AND FREAKING RUSKIN BOND. am sorry, but i cant stand ruskin bond. SORRY.

So am gonna put my stories on a haitues for a while...:)


	20. The smooth road

"That's what happened?!"

"yup."

"wow."

"I know."

"I mean, I totally don't remember a lot."

Tony was lying on a small bed, looking all frail and tired, but more than determined to get the story out of Steve before he could faint. Bruce was fast asleep , however, Natasha and Clint were having a, what the avengers liked to call, morning bird mood. They, no matter how much Steve consoled them, had a tight grip around their weapons, which were allowed in the S.H.E.I.L.D infirmary.

"Do you remember anything at all?" Steve asked, the politeness in his voice never fainting.

"... A knife, a frigging green god, ...and...THE AGENT! Is he alive?!" Tony exclaimed suddenly, panic rising in his voice.

"Yes he is. Two of the agents managed to control the bleeding."

Tony breathed a sigh of relief.

"Can I meet him?"

"Just rest for sometime, will you?"

"Aww, M'fine."

"Yeah." Steve nodded loyally, " but it's Pepper who needs convincing. She went to handle the press and the company."

 _" Well, Miss Potts is amazing at handling the press."_ A new voice said. The avengers turned towards the doorway, to see a man and a woman, both dressed in S.H.E.I.L.D uniforms.

" And you are...?" Tony asked.

" Agent Leopold Fitz and Jemma Simmons. Fury wants a total report of the mission, and we are here to guard the perimeter."

 **Apologies for the small chapter.**


	21. old issues

**Happy new year! Hope you are having a sick week- no, i hope you are not having a sick week. Because i am. Everyone, except me, in my house, is sick! isnt that fishy? I am lingering around, hoping not to catch anything, atleast till i turn fourteen, that is four days later...So.**

Tony's POV

I stared at the two agents, who greeted me. Fitz actually raised his hand to shake mine, but he faltered when I glared at him. Jemma smiled sympathetically, which I returned.

Steve bowed , courteously. " Well, I take my leave then!"

He closed the door.

As soon as he left, I wished he hadn't . Because, as soon as he did, the two agents slid of their masks and smirked. Fitz bent on me.

"Care to explain, Mr. Stark?"

"What , did Steve paint something on my face?"

" Steve didn't." Jemma glared at me, hands on her hips. " you did."

"Oh. I did? Must've been the drugs and stuff." I actually checked my reflection in the mirror. I laughed.

"Tony, do you really don't know anything about the palladium poisoning you?"

That shut me up.

" I am sorry-"

"We know. So drop the mask." Jemma commanded.

I frowned. How the hell did they know? He hadn't told a sou-

Natasha, the bitch!

I threw curses in the air.

 _"Natasha please dont tell anyone else..."_

 _"I won't let you waste away with everyone else thinking you are a selfish old brat."_

 _"I will tell them. When I am ready. Please Natasha. Let me have this one."_

 _Natasha smirked._

 _"Fine, playboy."_

"Tony?"

"Yeah?"

"We think there is a cure."

I chuckled. "No. Believe me. I am good at this.I have looked for everything-"

"Not everything."

Fitz took a small device and thrusted in the nape of my neck.

I yelped.

"Shit!" The heart monitors beeped for a few seconds, calming themselves along with me. "What did you do to me?!"

Jemma pulled the blanket which concealed my arc reactor and the blackened faded.

"What the-"

"Lithium has reduced the palladium levels in your blood. It's not a permanent cure, though." She added, noticing that I was about to speak.

"So, there is a cure?"

"Yes. So get out of the hospital as soon as you can and-"

"Nah. Get me the info. We start now."


	22. Dealing with it

**Hello!  
**

 **So I went on a teensy-meensy haitus (i don't remember telling you guys about it, I had exams, i am so sorry!)**

 **I have a few announcements before i proceed to the chapter:**

 **=I have holidays, so updates will be quick**

 **=This story is finishing up soon. I have patched up the storyline in my head, this one's ending. Thank you for your support!**

 **=This is not the last chapter still. I still need to annoy you for a few days.**

 _ **Chapter:Idunnowhichnumber**_

"My father never said that he loved me. He never even told me that he liked me so it is a bit hard for me to digest-"

"I knew him better than you." Fury explained. " I knew how his brain worked. He wanted you to figure everything on your own."

Tony sat back, tired.

"Everyone, knew him better than me."

"It won't hurt to watch a small video." Fury sighed, motioning towards a small case he had brought for Tony , labelled 'H. Stark'"

Tony nodded.

"Will you tell the team now?"  
"No! I mean.. now I have something on the issue,there is hope, they don't need to know."

"Tony, trusting people won't hurt you."

"It has. A lot."

"Virginia ought to know." Fury sipped his coffee.

"She is better without knowing."

Tony dropped his gaze to the small starkpad Jemma had brought for her.

' _But if you stress yourself over it, I swear , I will bury rest._

Fury got up. "I am sending in captain."

"Why?" Tony asked, perplexed. Steve and Tony didn't get along much, even after their ordeal , Tony was sure of it.

"You need to brief the team's captain atleast!"

"Nick, no!"

"You tell Steve, or drop the initiative. Tony, what if you get sick on a mission?"  
"My health has nothing to do with you!"

"Good luck."

Fury left the room, boots clanking. Tony clutched his forehead. What a mess.

He looked around the room.

 _"if jemma bury things that stress me out, bury Fury somehwere."_

Captain America entered the room, dressed in casuals, confused, but unknowingly threatening the man in front of him.

 _"Tony Stark,"_ Tony steeled himself internally, " _It's now or never"_


	23. A Team Trusts Each Other

'Tony?" Steve asked , "You called?"

"No!-Yeah! maybe..."

Steve frowned , visibly confused. He pulled a chair near the bed, and sat on it. It irked Tony. It would have been so much better, if Steve just buried himself somewhere rather than to talk to him.

"We caught Loki."

'Oh?" Tony blurted out, flabbergasted. The fact that Steve was being random didn't comfort him a bit.

"Yeah. "

"What?"

"So if you feel intimidated, there is nothing to be scared off.'

Oh.

"Are you kidding me?" Tony lamented, clearly offended.

"Tony, we are a team. We have your back. So trust is something we deserve."

"Uh huh."

Steve stared. Tony blinked.

"I do trust you." Tony said.

"You don't. If you had, then the mission would've gone differently."

"So , it's my fault?"

"I didn't say that!" Steve exclaimed, frustated.

Tony nodded, taking a deep breath.

"Nick told you anything else except I wanted to talk?"

"He told me to be lenient."

Tony chuckled. "That is so not Fury."

"Tony." Said Steve sternly.

"So, after I get out of the hospital," Tony began, "I might be a bit indisposed for further missions."

"Because you would need to rest."

"No, you idiot...I mean, there is a..." Tony fumbled for the words, running his hands through his hair," minor problem with the reactor."

Steve stiffened. "Minor?"

"Major."

Steve fell silent. He spared a glance at the arc reactor. " Will you be okay?"

"Maybe."

 _'No , you won't be, liar.'_

"What is wrong with it?" He asked solemnly.

"See," Tony inhaled sharply, "The core is based off palladium. And palladium doesn't work very good with your body. It's a bit like... _poison._ "

Steve's understanding expression turned into a livid one. "Why didn't you tell us?!"

" Natasha knows."

"Natasha is one member! I am your leader!"

"You just have a captain in your name!" Tony screamed, then winced horribly as the movement sent jolts of pain through his body.

Steve sat back on his chair.

" _You will die , won't you?"_ He asked silently.

Tony flinched. He had neither expected the question, nor he wanted to answer it. It was the very thought which scared him.

"With the information Nick provided, no." He lied.

IT WAS A VIDEO. A FRIGGING VIDEO. A video, pushing him to make a component, which was impossible to make.

No Hope.

"Miss Potts-"

"Doesn't know."

"At the very least, tell her!"

" I tried! She won't listen!"

"She deserves to know."

Tony closed his eyes and exhaled sharply.

Steve stood up.

"I will help you."

"You know nothing about science!"  
"No silly, I will help you to start trusting people. Even if it is the last thing you ever learn."

Tony nodded.

And he smiled.


End file.
